1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to a fuel supply system for use with an internal combustion engine and more particularly to a fuel supply system wherein a heated mixture of air, gasoline vapor and, under certain conditions, steam are provided to the intake manifold of the engine to increase the efficiency of the engine and to decrease the pollutants exhausted from the engine.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A fuel supply system for an internal combustion engine generally includes at least one carburetor wherein liquid gasoline is sprayed into a stream of incoming air which divides the liquid gasoline into fine droplets and conveys the gasoline droplets to the intake manifold of the engine. In such an arrangement, only the surface of the gasoline droplets can react with the oxygen in the air to burn which results in incomplete combustion and therefore does not fully utilize the fuel. Additionally, the exhaust gases discharged from the engine contain substantial amounts of unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen which are undesirable air pollutants.
Improved fuel supply systems include fuel injection arrangements wherein liquid fuel is injected directly into the intake manifold of an engine. Such systems provide greater vaporization than systems using one or more carburetors, but the fuel is still not completely and efficiently burned.
Other fuel supply systems introduce water into liquid fuel and attempts have been made to simultaneously vaporize the liquid fuel and the water. Such systems are relatively ineffective because of the separation of the liquid fuel vapor and the steam into droplets which results in incomplete combustion of the fuel mixture and occasional stalling of the engine. Additionally, this type of system requires that the engine operate at substantially uniform rpm or at a steady number of miles per hour.
Systems for producing a gaseous fuel for use in an internal combustion engine are disclosed in U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,452,215 and 4,423,716 which are directed to inventions made by the inventor of the instant application. The invention of the instant application is an improvement over the systems disclosed in those patents.